Pro wrestlers from the villainous team Damage CTRL (pronounced “Damage Control”) compete on WWE’s SmackDown brand. Iyo Sky, Kairi Sane, and Asuka are in the group. Bayley started the group in July 2022, but in February 2024, she was kicked out. Dakota Kai also left the group to join Bayley, as loyalties were questioned and new allegiances were formed.
Sky is the WWE Women’s Champion, and Asuka and Sane are the new WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions. Despite enjoying their highest peak in the WWE, the group found itself amid an ugly breakup. However, before things went south, Bayley had professed her love for the faction.
Bayley talks about why she loves Damage CTRL
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It was in July 2022 that Bayley, Dakota Kai, and IYO SKY, currently the WWE Women’s Champion, formed Damage CTRL. The group has grown since then and now has added Kairi Sane and Asuka to it.
In an interview with “Under the Ring,” Bayley talked about her stable as it is now.
Bayley also recently remembered meeting Asuka for the first time. It was during her time with SHIMMER, an all-women’s promotion that no longer exists, in the early 2010s. The four-time women’s champion said Asuka, one of her favorite opponents, is one of wrestling’s most inspirational women.
Damage CTRL broke up on a recent episode of SmackDown after enjoying a fruitful run for almost two years. Although everyone in the group had gold at one point, it had been clear for months that something terrible would happen.
Signs Damage CTRL’s breakup was quite a while coming
On a recent episode of SmackDown, IYO SKY, Asuka, and Kairi Sane made fun of Bayley in Japanese before she got into the ring. She heard the insults and was ready for the surprise because she hid a lead pipe under the steel steps. Once she got even with her old friends, she publicly challenged SKY at WrestleMania 40 for the WWE Women’s Championship.
There had been rumors about the group breaking up for a long time. Many things pointed to Damage CTRL’s split happening a long time ago. Damage CTRL was unlike the Bloodline in that every member could have their say.
Dakota Kai commenced serving as the group’s translator for the Japanese members. The group attracted marquee names such as Kairi Sane in 2023 and Asuka later on as she betrayed Lynch, Flair and Belair to pledge her allegiance to the group.
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It had to be one of the most significant signs that the familiar ways were about to end, as the group kept getting bigger around WarGames. After that, Asuka joined Damage CTRL and went up against Flair, Shotzi, and Belair. That betrayal also shocked Bayley, but she finally came to like the prospect of having more members as it allowed them to extend their reach and dominance more. Significant changes were happening without Bayley knowing about them, which probably made her realize she was losing control of the group she had led.
Nevertheless, one key event that could have played a part in disturbing the dynamics was when Damage CTRL suffered a defeat at Wargames with Bayley eating the decisive pin.
The other members came to a consensus and declared that Bayley had to start winning fights on her own, like the Royal Rumble. Asuka and Kairi Sane’s elimination shocked Bayley. Nevertheless, the former WWE Women’s champion proved her prowess in the Royal Rumble match as she emerged victorious. Seeing how dominant she was in the event probably didn’t go over well with the group.
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This lead to tensions in the stable and ultimately Bayley’s departure from the group as she vies to take down her former friend. What do you make of the recent developments that has happened for Damage CTRL?
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